ASEAN has enhanced its cooperation to combat irregular movement of people through the inclusion of people smuggling as one of ten areas of cooperation of the AMMTC, under the oversight of the SOMTC, in 2015.

With regard to trafficking in persons (TIP), there are several ASEAN Sectoral Bodies addressing this matter, namely the AMMTC and its subsidiary mechanisms, i.e. SOMTC and the ASEAN Directors-General of Immigration Departments and Heads of Consular Affairs Divisions of Ministries of Foreign Affairs Meeting (DGICM) as well as the ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF).

The SOMTC Working Group on Trafficking in Persons (WG on TIP) has served as a platform to facilitate discussions on the development of strategies to prevent and mitigate TIP cases in the region as well as ways to enhance cooperation to counter new challenges. The SOMTC WG on TIP also serves as a permanent mechanism for monitoring and reviewing the implementation of ACTIP and APA. In 2004, the HSU was established as an operational unit of TIP under SOMTC. The HSU mechanism serves as a platform to exchange information and experiences, develop common standard and approaches in investigating trafficking in persons cases, and to cooperate on operational cases, particularly in relation to victim protection and rescue. Given the interconnected nature of TIP and people smuggling, the Heads of Specialist Unit (HSU) on People Smuggling was established in 2023 under the DGICM framework, which is envisioned to work in tandem with the HSU under SOMTC. The HSU on People Smuggling serves as a platform for the ASEAN Member States to exchange information and share best practices in the fight against people smuggling.

The implementation of the ASEAN Multi-Sectoral Work Plan Against TIP 2023-2028 is led by SOMTC and involves ten relevant ASEAN Sectoral Bodies, namely:

• Under the ASEAN Political Security Community (APSC): SOMTC, the DGICM, the ASEAN Intergovernmental Commission on Human Rights (AICHR), the ASEAN Senior Law Officials Meeting (ASLOM), the Senior Officials Meeting of the Central Authorities on Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters (SOM-MLAT);
• Under the ASEAN Socio-Cultural Community (ASCC): the ASEAN Commission on the Promotion and Protection of the Rights of Women and Children (ACWC), the ASEAN Senior Labour Officials Meeting (SLOM), the ASEAN Senior Officials Meeting on Education (SOM-ED), the ASEAN Senior Officials Meeting on Health Development (SOMHD), the ASEAN Senior Officials Meeting on Social Welfare and Development (SOMSWD).

ASEAN has also maintained long-standing cooperation with Australia, as its Dialogue Partner, in addressing TIP through consecutive programmes since 2003, namely the Asia Regional Cooperation to Prevent People Trafficking (ARCPPT), the Asia Regional Trafficking in Person Project (ARTIP), the Australia-Asia Program to Combat Trafficking in Persons (AAPTIP), ACTIP Implementation Project (AIP) and the ASEAN-Australia Counter Trafficking (ACT).

Aside from the issues of people smuggling and TIP, the AMMTC also discussed cooperation in response to irregular movement of persons. The Emergency AMMTC (EAMMTC) Concerning Irregular Movement of Persons in Southeast Asia held in 2015 agreed on the establishment of a Trust Fund for voluntary contributions to support and assist the victims of trafficking in persons and irregular movement of persons in Southeast Asia. As mandated by the AMMTC, SOMTC adopted the “Terms of Reference (TOR) of the Trust Fund to Support Emergency Humanitarian and Relief Efforts in the Event of the Irregular Movement of Persons in Southeast Asia” in 2016.